System engineering on a large capital railway project; views from Jubilee Line Extension Project

The Jubilee Line Extension Project (JLEP) was conceived from the Central London Rail Study to provide high density transit service to the redeveloped London Docklands area east of the centre of London. This will be the first extension to the London Underground Limited networks since the last expansion phase in the 60s and 70s. The project offers numerous opportunities for innovative designs and technological challenges in civil engineering as well as electrical and mechanical systems. From the non-technical view, system engineering is nothing more then the putting together of various bits and pieces into a functional unit that meets the user requirement definitions. Whilst this is an acceptable broad statement, the involvement in putting together a ´Mega Project´ like Jubilee Line Extension can be very difficult and complex. Yet, the end result for JLEP is very simple. It will be an underground system that can be easily operated and maintained, and provide the customers with a reliable, rapid, safe and comfortable service both in the station environment and the train journey. This paper briefly highlights some of the pertinent system engineering consideration relating to the integration of multi-disciplined system-wide works into a modern mass rapid transit system JLE